An ever-present problem in many vehicles and other relatively small places is the lack of adequate toilet facilities. For example, a common problem among members of the trucking industry is the lack of a urinal in the sleeper compartment of a transfer truck cab. Oftentimes, truckers sleep in their trucks at rest stops or during alternating driving shifts while on the road. Such sleep is essential for safe, alert driving, yet sleep is often disturbed by a trucker having to leave the truck to urinate in a toilet in a rest area or other facility. Because sleeper compartments are designed to be completely dark to aid sound sleeping, a venture outside the truck to use the toilet usually jolts a trucker awake and greatly interrupts sleep.
To avoid sleep disturbance problems and the associated inconveniences of having to leave a truck to urinate, many truckers prefer to urinate in a jar or similar container for later disposal during waking hours. However, this approach to relieving oneself is fraught with problems as well. In addition to the obvious sanitation problems, such an approach to mid-sleep urination often unduly awakens a trucker because of the need to turn on a bright light in the truck's sleeper compartment to avoid a mishap.
Similar problems regarding urination occur in a wide range of other situations involving lengthy confinement, such as in boats or small aircraft. While the need for the least possible interruption of sleep may not be as relevant in such situations, the need to urinate comfortably and sanitarily is an ever-present concern when a person is confined in a place without conventional toilet facilities. Therefore, a need exists for a compact urinal system, which can be either portable or permanently installed in truck sleeper compartments, boats, small aircraft, etc., that is sanitary and lends itself to neat, convenient use. Especially with regard to truck sleeper compartments, it is particularly important that there be a urinal system that can be used without a need for bright, awakening lights.